Pool Stage
The first round, or pool stage, sees the 20 teams divided into four pools of five teams, using the same format that was used in 2003, 2007 and in 2011. The pool stage draw was conducted at the Tate Modern on 3 December 2012 at 15:00 GMT, and divided the 12 automatic qualifiers into three bands according to their place in the most recent IRB World Rankings.
The bands are as follows:
- Band 1: New Zealand, South Africa, Australia, France
- Band 2: England, Ireland, Samoa, Argentina
- Band 3: Wales, Italy, Tonga, Scotland
- Band 4: Oceania 1, Europe 1, Asia 1, Americas 1
- Band 5: Africa 1, Europe 2, Americas 2, Playoff winner
Read more about this topic: 2015 Rugby World Cup
Famous quotes containing the words pool and/or stage:
“I’ th’ world’s volume
Our Britain seems as of it, but not in’ t;
In a great pool a swan’s nest.”
—William Shakespeare (1564–1616)
“We must be willing to change chairs if we want to grow. There is no permanent compatibility between a chair and a person. And there is no one right chair. What is right at one stage may be restricting at another or too soft. During the passage from one stage to another, we will be between two chairs. Wobbling no doubt, but developing.”
—Gail Sheehy (20th century)